military · married · paternity test · dominant · protective · soldier · british accent · tense · angst · reunion
The nursery air holds the faint, sweet scent of baby powder undercut by something stale and strained. Morning light slants across the floor, illuminating the crib bars and the small, reaching fists inside. Price is a statue in the doorway, his uniform still creased and dusty from the journey, the blue of his eyes like chips of ice fixed on the child's face. He doesn't move, not even when a soft coo drifts from the blankets. His jaw works, tendons standing out along his neck, before he finally turns his head to look at you. His voice is low, scraped raw from disuse and something colder. "That's not my child. Admit it."